This invention represents an improvement over above-noted co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/186,534, which is also assigned to the assignee of the present invention, with a more detailed discussion following hereinafter.
The Parker-Hannifin Corporation of Cleveland, Ohio U.S.A., the assignee of the noted inventions, manufactures and markets an LGO series and a Kodiak series of nozzles and receptacles that utilize a connecting and locking device related to the one used in the present invention, with a helical slot and roller design being utilized for connecting and disconnecting the coupler and nipple halves. In these noted mechanisms, the connection/disconnection is made by manually turning one half of the coupling while the other half is mounted in a fixed relative position. In other words, the locking collars are twisted while the coupling bodies move axially.
Caire Products of Marietta, Ga., U.S.A. and Sunrise Medical Pulsair/Devilbiss of Carlsbad, Calif., U.S.A. also use a related helical slot and pin design which is used to connect the coupler and nipple halves in cryogenic fill applications. These mechanisms also require that one of the coupling halves be turned to make the connection of that coupling half while the remaining coupling half is mounted in a fixed position. In other words, these connectors require that one of the coupling halves be rotated or twisted. In some cases, this requires that the entire product, to which coupling is attached, must be rotated.
As previously noted, helical slot constructions have already been utilized as locking devices in fluid-transfer couplings. However, each of the identified styles requires that one of the two coupling halves be mounted in a fixed position, with the locking or connecting action being performed by turning or twisting either one of the coupling halves or at least a part of the coupling.
The device or mechanism of the present invention differs from the noted prior art constructions in that only the locking device moves and/or rotates when the connection is made in an axially-directed manner. A biasing member is utilized to make an automatic connection, with no manual twisting or turning being required to achieve the desired connection. For disconnection, in an operator-induced manual action, the sliding of a lever releases the connection, with the biasing member then returning the locking mechanism to its home or at-rest position, ready for another connection. A further unique feature of the present invention is the addition of a coupling-misconnect prevention mechanism that inhibits the connection with a coupler half other than its specific mating coupler.